Secluded Secrets
by Cinderspark
Summary: As a child, prince Makoto loved everything; good or evil, his ambition and spirit blazed brightly. Growing up, however, he loses his passion and finds himself dedicated to the dry and repetitious realities of politics. One day, a mysterious assassin appears and almost takes his life, but instead, something unexpected happens that will rewrite his existence and change him forever...
1. Prologue

_There once was a boy who loved the world around him as much as a person possibly could. It mattered not if life harrowed him relentlessly: he nurtured each moment dearly, as a mother loves her child. No matter what obstacle blocked the path, he pushed through with unwavering resilience and determination._

 _On this particular summer's day, he was in an excellent mood, for his parents had recently introduced him to the ceremony of 'marriage'. In marriage, you were chosen to be someone's 'significant other'; 'special person', as the boy called it. You were allowed to share the world with them; and he loved his world so, so much, he could hardly contain himself at the thought of sharing these wonders with someone else._

 _Many occasions had he attempted to mingle with the royal guests this way-by spilling those stories his parents had infused his thoughts with-but each time sighing when they brushed him aside and told him to play with his toys. 'They talk to each other about what they want,' he often thought, 'so why can't I?' From that point on, Makoto busied himself in the business of politics and social rights-partly for himself, and partly because it was now his duty to, as his parents had transferred to another region to sort out other ordeals._

 _Currently, he was debating homosexual rights as many uproars had arisen in local factions concerning them and lives had been lost. "These atrocities," he declared, "are threatening the lives of the good people here in *Heiwa. Not only does this affect us; it also affects the trust of our allies. Do we really want them to think that our people turn on one another like animals simply because an issue isn't resolved properly? No; this must cease immediately if we hope to maintain our reputation and uphold values of trust, respect and morality. My faithful aide, Sousuke, shall now deliver our proposal."_

 _Said aide cleared his throat and recited from a long scripture. Upon finishing, the obligatory applause was given and he sat down, recovering his breath. Makoto scanned the sea of faces and, as usual, saw expressions of boredom and chuckles of mockery rippling around. Sighing internally, his hopes wilted again; as a child, he dreamt that speeches were supposed to inspire change, wonder; a revolution! Now, he realised they were nothing but empty rituals leading to empty solutions-perhaps some gossip for the common-folk. Nothing new or exciting ever happened-always "this is too far-fetched" or "we shall recommence this matter at a later date"._

 _Makoto's eyelids drooped as he started to drift-"...urgency! There's been a break-in at the nursery! Everyone has been ordered to evacuate immediately... thieves are armed and stealthy. There aren't exact numbers yet, so... Please exit in an orderly fashion!" Makoto rubbed his eyes and snapped to attention. 'Ran; Ren!' By the time he rose, everyone else was gone. The prince sprinted towards the nursery where his younger siblings were, praying that nothing had happened to them._

 _Moments before reaching the main hallway, a slender, cloaked figure cut off his path. It wielded two blades and most likely possessed many other dangerous weapons underneath the fabric. One of his tutors had warned him about their kind: assassins. Makoto scowled at his terrible luck-mockery at the meeting, falling asleep; now, a run-in with an assassin! But enough cerebration: he needed a plan of action._

 _Backwards was the easy option, but then the twins would be in danger; heading forwards now would leave him a pile of mangled flesh. Going with his gut instinct and quick judgements, he turned back and ran, inviting the killer to a chase. Surprisingly, it worked-a little too well. A few years of laps in the palace would not surpass many years of intense training, and he could have slapped himself for neglecting such an important detail. It was over in seconds, with Makoto pinned to the ground, helpless and hopeless._

 _Scarlet flushed his cheeks as tears pricked his eyes; position of power didn't mean anything if you were too weak to retaliate. 'Ran, Ren; mother, father; I'm sorry I couldn't do anything for you. I've never been able to influence others; I'm worthless. No, not just worthless; a disappointment. Always, my love and aspirations pushed me ahead, kept me ambitious; zealous: now, I know that those have always been delusions, like a horse pulling an empty carriage. I'm... sorry.'_

 _Hot breath tickled his neck as the assassin leant in closer-instead of excruciating pain, he received a whisper: "Meet me in the palace courtyard at daybreak tomorrow. If you even so much as think of skipping, I'll slit the throats of your two precious siblings, Ran and Ren. Don't keep me waiting, either, or there will be other consequences." With that, he released Makoto and, nimbly as a hare, scurried off in a different direction. The prince slowly peeled himself off the ground whilst trying to comprehend what had just occurred. 'So, a band of assassins broke into the palace to kidnap my siblings specifically to request a meeting with me. That's suspiciously excessive, considering the laws of peace in this country...hm.' He brushed himself off and headed off to find Sousuke: he'd know what to do._

 **Author's Notes**

*Heiwa - my extensive research on Google led me to conclude that this word means 'peace' or 'harmony' in Japanese.

My apologies for taking so long to write something. I've had a long case of writer's block, but hopefully I'll be able to chug something out for this at least once a month. I've got a firm concept in my mind that's itching to be written, so I hope you'll enjoy it and, if you're feeling generous, maybe even leave me some feedback? Thanks!


	2. Plans

In the office, Sousuke sat with spectacles perched comfortably on the bridge of his nose as he sorted through various legal documents at a desk. Suddenly, a flustered Makoto stumbled into the room and slammed both fists on the desk, huffing and puffing as he recovered his breath.

"What is the matter, sir?" the aide inquired. It certainly was a rarity to find the prince in this state.

"Regarding the recent incident... have security increased in every area, especially the nursery. We must maintain tight defences to prevent any more break-ins and to ease the minds of our citizens," he ordered.

"Of course, my liege. Have you any other requests?"

"Actually... yes. There is something I would like to discuss with you privately, if you don't mind." Makoto shot a serious glance at Sousuke, which he returned with an inquisitive upwards gaze. Their eyes locked together for a few seconds, then Sousuke sighed and waved him away.

"Very well then, I shall be done with these papers in a half-hour. Please remain outside until I call you back in."

With that, prince Makoto stepped into the corridor and sat down on the nearest windowsill. Outside was the courtyard: a large, grassy area with pretty pavement, pleasant plant-life and other ornamentation. Soft evening light filtered in through the glass as he recalled the day's events. Fragments of panicked screaming rattled his mind and set him at unease; he could almost hear himself breaking down thinking that not only was he going to lose his life, but Ran and Rens' too. Cursing silently at his moment of weakness, the prince heaved weighty legs onto the sill, laxed his head, and drifted off against the sun-heated panes.

"Sir, wake up," a gentle yet firm voiced whispered into Makoto's ear. His eyes slowly peeled open and he found himself face-to-face with Sousuke. Embarrassed, he averted his gaze to the courtyard and covered his mouth with a sweaty palm. "Shall we head into my office now? I noticed you were asleep, so I went ahead and fetched some wine from the cellar-you seemed troubled, was all."

"Ah, yes," Makoto mumbled through his hand, "it's about today's tragic occurrence... there is something I haven't told anyone else yet, and I've been waiting to discuss it with you. I appreciate you setting aside this valuable time for me, Sousuke."

"Haha, I assure you, it's not a problem, sir. After all, I owe you for reasons that may only be repaid if I remain under your command until death." The aide chuckled in his unique, gruff way and beckoned Makoto towards the room. Makoto grinned back and subsequently followed. Sousuke had his own special way of showing gratitude: through their brief exchanges, they shared a connection deeper than surface value.

Makoto entered and sat down in front of the desk; it was strange, but this arrangement made it seem as if Sousuke had more authority, even though Makoto was a prince. It reminded him of the past when he would come here for hide-and-seek; there was a secret passage under the desk that he always hid in, which led down a curved, stone staircase to an underground area. In that area there were many doors, all of which bar one led to the palace; the exception was locked, and no matter how hard young Makoto pushed and pulled, it wouldn't budge. Eventually, the passage had been discovered and closed off, leaving him forever curious. Sousuke, though the same age as him, had been the one to find out he was doing this, ordering the passage to be sealed up, then scolding him for causing a fuss. Makoto had been so frightened, he'd nearly cried; though that was well in the past now, he still felt intimidated by him.

Pulling out from his reverie, Makoto realised Sousuke was waiting for him to talk. He cleared his throat and meticulously recited the tale of meeting the mysterious assassin. Sousuke hummed and nodded when appropriate, then sat in silence when all was said. Tension filled the air as neither spoke nor moved; even the creaking of old floorboards upstairs did not disturb the dreadful silence. Finally, Sousuke crossed his arms and said "It appears that they are serious, or they would not have gone through such risky length simply to speak to you. I suggest you do as they say-I shall order archers as a precautionary measure, of course. Please report everything they say so I may plan ahead accordingly; we don't just want to give them what they desire after the disquiet they've caused. And please, sir, don't look so downcast; this will be sorted soon."

Makoto gave a small smile and shuffled about on his chair. "Thank you. I appreciate your reassurance." A short silence followed, then he took his leave with a "well, I shall speak with you again tomorrow, Sousuke", going straight to sleep afterwards as he knew rising early would be important if he were to manage tomorrow.

Prince Makoto rose as the birds were still singing and the blush of dawn had recently spread across the sky. He changed into his everyday attire and scraped the plaque off his teeth, then headed straight to the courtyard. Pausing before its doors with a deep breath, he braced himself and flung them open. A singular figure awaited him in the centre of the garden, holding a slip of paper in their hand.

 **Author's Notes**

Disclaimer: I do not own Free! or any of its characters (unfortunately); all that glory belongs to Kyoto Animation.

This isn't a SouMako-centric fic so you can interpret these as SouMako moments if you wish, however the main ship will be MakoHaru.

Also, a couple other rambly notes: proper 'shippy' stuff probably won't happen for another few chapters yet (I'm hoping it'll be around 3 or 4 more 'til a 'good' part, though I haven't written stuff in advance which is also why this is later than promised, sorry); I'm trying to incorporate some good story in here too so it hopefully won't just be another read-and-move-on-fanfic, though I'm not experienced at writing fics and only have a basic plan so I can't promise stellar results; also, I'm not dead, but inspiration has been dry lately, plus a difficult year of school's started, however I'm trying harder to stick more closely to promises so hopefully it won't take more than a few months to update stuff.

Anyway, I hope you'll continue to read and I hope to update before Christmas! (Haha...)


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